Growing Up Gallagher
by r.gally37
Summary: a collection of future one shots based off of Ian and Mickey and their collection of kids.
1. A Morning in May

Chapter 1: A Morning in May

Its one of those things that sneaks up on you. You've been moving non-stop for the past 18 years to wake up one morning and realize that you have your own clan. 6 Gallagher children all of your own.

"Hey Mick…. how the hell did it happen?" you ask your husband of 14 years.

"What Gallagher?"

"We have six kids."

"i know. and?"

"Mickey, how in the hell did we get six fucking kids?"

"Well, you see when a mommy and a daddy don't love each other, they tend to pawn off their children, and give them to two daddies that do love each other." your husband replies and you smack him upside the head for it.

"What the hell are we doing?" You ask him.

"What? You wanna sell one?" he asks chuckling "We could get a pretty good price for the twins? Or the little one… she's cute." he finishes.

"Maybe, we'll have to think about it." you joke as you roll out of bed to wake up your brood on the sunny tuesday spring morning. Walking out into the hallway you ring the bell outside the bathroom that wakes up all of the children at once. An assortment of groans fills the old Milkovich house as your Gallaghers ready themselves for the day, and you laugh at the irony of this happy family living in the Milkovich house of horrors.

After you shower and dress, you know you have exactly 12 minutes before the first kid walks downstairs expecting breakfast. You crack a dozen eggs into the frying pan and start scrambling, while your husband, still in his pajamas, starts toasting bread and pulling out silver wear. Its a nice routine, something that reminds you of your childhood when Fiona would institute family breakfasts, before Jimmy/Steve and bi-polar disorder and life in the south side pulled your family apart.

Yev walks down first, throws his backpack into the family room and fills his plate with food. He's in one of his typical teenage angst moods and Ian smirks knowing the kid will soon grow out of his punk rock, trying to be a musician phase. Mickey, on the other hand is not very tolerable of the moody kid that Yev has grown up into.

"Good Morning Dads! Good morning Yev, anything exciting today? No, mostly i'll pout and write depressing lyrics in my journal and then run errands for my fathers, and pick up the twins from hockey practice. Sound like a plan? Sounds perfect son, thanks for offering!" Mickey plays out both sides of the conversation and ignores the exasperated sigh Yev lets out at the idea of having to pick up his little brothers.

"If i'm going to win class president, i'm going to need more help then i've been getting from you guys. We need to make at least a dozen more posters tonight, and they need to stand out. I'm talking serious glitter here people." Starts your 12 year old daughter Rose as she walks down the stairs, arms full of campaign supplies as she runs for 7th grade class president come fall. "Its quite sad when a six year old is being the most useful, I expect more from you guys. Yev, you think your artsy, how hard is it to glue down glitter in a box to frame the picture of me?"

"I'm sorry if my natural instinct is to cover the hideous beast." greets the 11 year old Connor as he runs into the kitchen, a ball of energy, and is promptly met with a thwack upside the head and a 'be nice' as he runs past you to collect his breakfast.

"What are you doing today Connor?" Mickey asks as he mentally tries to plan out the pick-up schedule for the day.

"I have 5th grade graduation practice this afternoon, which they're only giving me four tickets to by the way, so one of you is going to have to go in and pull a Milkovich." you laugh at the familial term for getting something done. "Then I was invited to Jack McCarthy's birthday party tomorrow, but I don't really feel like going because then I have to buy him a gift and I don't like Jack enough to spend money on him. Unless Yev and I just happen to go bowling tomorrow, and I just happen to receive a piece of cake from a distracted mother who doesn't know if i am part of the birthday celebration or not." He muses out loud.

"Yev, take the evil mastermind, bowling tomorrow. Feed him with sugar and then take him to your band practice to wear it off." you tell your eldest son. "What time is graduation rehearsal done Con?"

" 4:30 so I can walk to the garage and go home with Dad at 6." You look at Mickey and he nods in confirmation that he would expect the kid at 4:45.

"Stop it! Let go of me! Brendan, Sam stop!" You hear coming from the stairs and look up in time to see the twins, dressed in army fatigues, carrying your youngest daughter by her hands and feet like a pig going to roast.

'Boys, drop your sister!" Mickey calls and immediately Reagan is dropped on her back. She pops up immediately and runs to Mickey, gives him a hug and collects breakfast.

"Yev, we have baseball tryouts after hockey today so you need to stay for that otherwise we won't make a team. They like to see family involvement." Sam tells his brother as he sits at the table.

"Yeah Yev." Reagan agrees.

"Reagan, for the last time you aren't coming to tryouts with us. 1) You're a baby, they're never going to let a six year old on the Single A team, its for 8 and 9 year olds, you belong in Rookies. and 2) You're a girl. You don't have the speed, power or skill to play with the big boys." Brendan told his little sister.

"Watch me ass-face." the little girl accepts the challenge in a way that is completely your husband.

"Reagan, language. Boys, take your sister to try outs. Yev, can you run by the gym during hockey and pick her up from Ian?" Mickey asks.

"Sure Dad, its not like i had anything else to do today." Yev replies.

"Great!" responds Mickey, choosing to ignore the sarcasm.

The room breaks out into chatter, and you sit back in your chair and watch your family. They're happy, and healthy and have two parents who love them with everything they have. And you have the man of your dreams sitting across the table from you. Everything in the house is so different from 18 years ago. There is laughter, and color and love. So much love. This family, despite all of their complaining, and teasing would do anything to make sure everyone else is taken care of. And as that thought comes to your head Brendan places three familiar orange bottles in front of you, and Sam a glass of milk.

"You left these upstairs Daddy, you need to take them." Sam tells him his hazel eyes worried, because they remember the one time they had run out of pills.

"With a glass of milk." Connor adds from across the table. You smile at your boys, and pop open the bottles and take your medicine. You don't hate the pills anymore, because they let you live this life. With these kids, your amazing kids. And you sit back and watch an ordinary morning in May.


	2. Stop and Stare

Notes: Warning for homophobic language and cursing.

Many things attract stares. a loud child for instance. An abundance of loud children. Tattoo's. A man covered in tattoo's with an abundance of loud children. Two men in a relationship. But two men, covered in tattoos trying to get their six very loud children to behave in a super market will attract every stare in the store.

Mickey used to feel overwhelmed by the stares, it reminded him of his childhood. Of Terry watching his every move waiting for him to mess up, giving his a reason to punish the young Milkovich. But now he embraces it. This is his life. His family. Its the new normal he jokes when Sam asks why people are looking at them. Its the new normal, and some people aren't ready for it.

Ian is a drill sergeant giving the kids orders and telling them what to get. seven dozen eggs for the week, three gallons of milk, a pound and a half of cheese and deli meats, four loaves of bread. And make sure every brand is on sale. Ian keeps telling Mickey that they need a membership at Costco, but Mickey would miss their frugal ransacking of the local grocery store.

Mickey is looking through the shampoos trying to find the biggest, cheapest bottle when he hears a loud crash followed by the familiar fighting of the twins. He sighs and takes off to fix the issue before the family is removed from the store.

When he arrives he is greeted by the manager, a plump older woman, with a boy in each hand, chastising Rose as the young girl tries to clean up the display of chips that the seven year olds knocked over.

"May I help you?" Mickey asks the manager as Rose looks as if she is about to cry.

"Are these your kids?" The manager asks Mickey looking him up and down, taking in his jump suit, bunched around his waist from work and the tattoos down his arms and on his knuckles.

"Yes, they are. And i would appreciate it if you would unhand them." Mickey says trying to stay civil as the boys are released and he can see the beginning of bruises on their arms.

"I suggest you keep your children with you when traveling through the store, It helps prevent messes like these." The manager tells Mickey, with a judging look.

"I suggest you have an employee clean this mess before someone else trips. Or you pay my daughter for her work." Mickey tells him.

"Mick stop." A familiar voice warns as he feels a hand on his arm. He turns to see his husband, their little girl in his arms and the two other boys behind him. Ian places the four year old in Mickey's arms to calm him down and turns to the woman.

"I'm very sorry for his attitude, and this mess. What can I do to help?" Ian begins his usual good cop to Mickey's bad.

"Are you two together?" The woman asks, eyebrows raised into her hairline.

"Yes…" Ian responds apprehensively, waiting to see where the woman was about to take the confrontation. Ian could be cool and calm in most situations. But he does not stand for bigotry.

"Well that explains so much." The woman responds. 'Your devil children are out of control because they don't have a mother to train them. That is why people should never give you homosexuals children. No idea of what to do with them."

"Guys, lets go." Yev ushers his younger siblings away from the oncoming argument, grabbing Reagan out of Mickey's arms.

"My 'devil children' are just fine thank you very much. They ran into a display. Which i'm sure happens all the time." Ian begins. "And you're homophobic way of thinking isn't proving anyone right or wrong. We are going to continue raising our kids whether you agree with it or not."

"And don't think I missed the bruises you left on those boys arms. We could sue the shit out of you for discrimination, and man-handling a minor." Mickey added on, not knowing if he could actually do such a thing or not. But it sounded intimidating.

"Look, you are God's mistakes and you are raising those innocent kids in the den of the Devil. You are unfit parents with your tattoos and unnatural tendencies, not to mention that you have way too many kids in whatever fudge-packing brothel you live in. I should call the Department of Family Services immediately."

"The kids are in the car." Came Yevgeny's voice from behind Ian and Mickey. The two men were bright red and ready for a fight and appreciated their eldest son coming back into the store before they did something stupid. Yev made eye contact with Mickey, who was more likely to do something regrettable. "You should go calm them down." Mickey nods and leaves Ian and Yev to deal with the manager.

"If you call DFS," the young boy warned the manager, "i will tell them about everything that happened here today. About your employees following me and my little brother around making sure we didn't steal anything under your orders because of my Harold Washington High School sweatshirt. About how you physically harmed my brothers for tripping on your display, and how you yelled homophobic slurs across the supermarket at my fathers. You cannot win this war, you are on the wrong side of history my friend. The world is changing and its time you changed too." Yev pushed Ian towards the exit leaving the carts full of groceries in the aisle. "Its the new normal!" He yelled thrusting both middle fingers into the air back at the manager.

'You're something else kid." Ian told the high school sophomore, ruffling up his hair in pride as the entire super market watched on.

"Hey, I learned from the best." He beamed up at Ian, proud to call the red head his father. The two walked out into the parking lot to see Mickey hugging his kids close, promising them that no one was going to take them away, and that they were not in fact devil children.

"Well, we're a little bit of devil children but that comes from being Gallagher's and Milkovich's and has nothing to do with the gay thing." Yev told the group and was giving a tear soaked giggle in return. Connor wrapped his arms around his big brother, and Rose held on to Ian.

"I guess this means we have to buy a membership at Costco now." Mickey told Ian over their children's heads. Ian bursted out laughing.

"Just think about how much trouble they're going to get into there."


	3. Gallaghers vs Goliath

The kids notice right away when they walk downstairs and Mickey is burning the banana pancakes for the second day in a row. Yesterday it wasn't a big deal. Ian was sick, or tired, and Mickey had let him sleep in. But Ian didn't come downstairs for dinner either. He didn't come down at all. Or talk to any of the kids. The absence has taken its toll on the Gallagher clan. The breakfast table is silent except for the sounds of people eating.

"Where's Daddy?" Rose asks, always one to address the elephant in the room. Mickey and Yev make eye contact, the 17 year old knew about Ian's disorder, but had never seen him like this before. He always knew it was a possibility, but he never really thought about how it would happen, how it would effect his father, the younger kids, himself.

"You guys know how Daddy takes those pills every morning?" Mickey asks the table. They all nod. "Those are his magic pills."

"Like in Jack and the Beanstalk." Brendan adds.

"Kind of. Except that instead of growing a giant, these pills defeat it." Yev tries to explain. "Daddy has a giant in his head that makes him sick, and the pills help him defeat it."

"So why is the giant back?" asked Sam.

"Because Daddy ran out of the pills, and couldn't get any new ones." Mickey told the children. "But he will be okay in a couple of days, we just need to keep quiet, and let him sleep. That makes the pills work the fastest." The children nod.

"How does the giant make Daddy sick? What is he hurting?" Connor asks Mickey.

"The giant makes Daddy sad. Very sad. So the pills help cheer him up." Mickey answers, hoping that his answers are satisfying his children's questions. The table falls silent again, and the kids quickly pack up and head off to school.

Mickey goes to check up on Ian one last time before heading to work. He quietly creeps into the room and pets Ian's hair.

"The kids miss you. It was silent today. Like actual silence. They know somethings wrong, and they want to help. I'm going to head to work but if you need anything, anything at all just call me and i'll come home okay?" Mickey asks. Ian just nods as answer. Mickey kisses his forehead and heads to work.

At the end of the day Mickey is exhausted walking up the stairs to his home. He opens the door to find silence once again. He looks around the first floor and doesn't find any of the kids. He heads upstairs to look in their rooms but once again comes up empty handed. He knows they're home because Yev had texted him when they had walked in at 3. He goes to check on Ian, sees if he knows where everyone is.

"Hey babe, have you seen the kids?" He asks, but is quickly answered by the sight of his husband in their bed surrounded by all six kids and a plethora of cards and home made presents. Mickey smiles to himself and starts to remove the presents and cards from the bed and looks through them.

Reagan's card has a big happy sun on it and in sloppy five year old hand writing tells Ian that she misses him and his banana pancakes. Because Daddy Mickey can't make them good. The message is followed by a page and a half of x's and o's and a drawing of whom he suspects is her and Ian playing catch in their White Sox shirts.

Next he comes across Connor's card. Its a quote from Harry Potter that Ian painted on Conner's wall when he was younger, since the two of them would read it together every night. '_Happiness can be found, even in the darkest of times, if one only remembers to turn on the light.' _It's written in neat calligraphy and Mickey can tell that Connor spent a lot of time on it. The thoughtfulness on that boy never ceased to amaze him.

Brendan's card was next in his pile. It was a picture entitled 'Gallaghers vs Goliath' and showed all of the family fighting against a blue giant with SAD written across the body. It was Brendan's interpretation of what Mickey and Yevgeny had told him this morning about the magic pills.

Sam's card followed and had a list. 10 reasons i want to be like my Daddy. 1) I want to be strong. 2) I want to be loved. 3) I want to be brave. 4) I want to fight bad guys. 5) I want to be smart. 6) I want to beat giants. 7) I want to be in love like both my daddies 8) I want to be happy, even when i can't be. 9) I want to help other people. 10) I want a big family like this one.

Mickey's grin had spread across his entire face at this point as he couldn't believe the love and happiness that his children felt which was so different from his own childhood.

Yevgeny had written Ian a song. The musical side was gibberish to Mickey, but the words were clear. The kids felt Ian's sadness, and they wanted him to get better because they loved him no matter what. And if or when he got sick again they would always be there to cheer him up again. But one line stood out to Mickey. 'Empty your sadness like you're dumping a purse on my bedroom floor, we put your curse in reverse.' To Mickey thats what Ian's sadness was, it was every stressful feeling, every ill-thought he had ever had pouring out of him. And this family was trying to put him back together again.

"Don't" said a small voice before he could start reading Rose's note. He looked up to see his elder daughter awake on the bed. "I.. it's nothing bad, it's just for him. And y'know its personal, and he's my person. Don't get me wrong, i love you daddy. But he's my best friend. and the note is for him." Rose finishes, looking up at Mickey and expecting disappointment. Mickey just smiled at the young girl.

"Okay Rosie, I won't read it." Mickey agrees. He puts the collection of cards down on the bedside table and climbs into the small space by the edge left by his kids. Because they were all right, Ian was going to be better, and they were going to be there every step of the way.


End file.
